LG's Recommendation Thread

[Lord Grendel]

Been meaning to get to this for a while, so here is a thread for some classical music CD's that I have in my collection.

Seeing Sox asked for some music to get deeper into the genre here are two compilation CD's that I would recommend to anyone.


The first is "Dances Of Death" a collection of Darker themes from various composers, but it covers a wide spectrum of music so it's a good starting point. Plus it's on one of my favorite labels, Living Presence distributed by Philips, they are just amazingly good CD's.






My second recommend is another compilation CD, this one is "French Opera Highlights", and I'll bet most of you have heard these pieces before but just didn't realize who wrote them. Again it's on Living Presence, which is a guarantee of quality.





I don't know if these are out of print or not...but if you can find them they are awesome recordings and worth picking up.

[Sox]

Cheers LG I`m on to them. (found them)

[METALPRIEST]

[Lord Grendel]

Okay here are two more for my friend Sox. I would recommend both of these to anyone who was interested in classical music.

Rossini's Overtures, he wrote many operas which I don't like as a rule, but thankfully many versions of the Overtures from his most famous ones are available in compilations like the one I have pictured below.





Now here is a masterwork by Bela Bartok, two amazing pieces that have been used in so many movies and television shows over the years you will recognize many of them right away. I have three versions of this work, my favorite is the Fritz Reiner/Chicago Symphony version but the Levine CD I have scanned is very good too.





I would recommend playing these on your good stereo or surround, ear-buds just won't do them justice.

[CP/M User]

I guess YouTube wouldn't do them justice either through PC Speakers, though I just wanted to get some idea as to what I'd be hearing from those albums - Allegri did some great stuff like that just by sticking some sampled music from some of those Russian Composers!

[Lord Grendel]

Although I didn't post any samples all the information is on the covers CP/M, and classical just doesn't sound very good on most youtube videos generally. Go to Grooveshark and see if they have a streaming version the sound quality they have is usually better. And Allegri used to post dl links which I am not going to do.

[Julez]

I'll look into that first CD, I like dark classical music.

[jackory]

LG, have you listened to any of Mahler's work? I saw you piece on Beethoven and the first thing that came to mind was "I'll bet he would dig Mahler". Mahler practically worshiped Beethoven and you can hear it in his music. I've got a link to a sharity blog that has a lot of his stuff for dl, if you haven't already discovered him.

Also, in my opinion, the most sublime "classical" music ever composed is the 3rd symphony of Henryk Gorecki's. I know this is your recommendation thread, but I had to mention it.

[Lord Grendel]

Hey nice to have some company in here.

Feel free to post Gorecki's best version of that symphony in here Jackory.(I have all of Mahler's symphonies Jackory, but that is all, I am not a fan of lieders arias or opera, although I will give The Ring another chance.)

Julez, please go ahead and put Rachmaninnov back if you want, I am a big fan of his myself.

[jackory]

Actually I don't have a link for the Gorecki, only the Mahler.

I like Mahler's symphonies best, too, though I also enjoy Das Lied Von Der Erde (especially the awesome last movement) and Kindertotenleider.

As for the symphonies...I think I will always like the second one best. After seeing a DVD of Claudio Abbado conducting the 7th it has become a favorite as well. My least favorite is the 8th, but it's probably just too complex for me to get into at this stage. Maybe in a few years.

[Lord Grendel]

I was thinking more of which version of his 3rd Symphony you consider his best, not a link. I see a version available, I'll check it out and post my thoughts in here after I've listened to it.

[jackory]

Originally Posted by Lord Grendel

I was thinking more of which version of his 3rd Symphony you consider his best, not a link. I see a version available, I'll check it out and post my thoughts in here after I've listened to it.

Oh, sorry about that...I'm torn between the first and second movements of the symphony. There is a vocal part, I should warn you, but it is uncommonly exquisite (the Dawn Upshaw version) and it may not put you off like others. Gorecki's Totuus Tuus is awesome. too. You might like it even if you aren't into choral music.

[Lord Grendel]

I like chorale music fine Jac, I have Carmina Burana in the library and it is awesome, and quite a few other pieces with chorale accompaniment as well so no worries there.

[Julez]

... Because I got the permission from Lord Grendel to also give a recommendation:


Sergei Rachmaninov! I first got to know him when I saw the movie Shine, when I was 14 or so, been a big fan since. You should watch that movie if you're a Rachmaninov - fan as well, it's a good movie. (It's not his lifestory or something, but just includes Rachmaninov music)

I recommend this CD, if you like complex piano music, I'm sure you'll love it:


Tracklist:
10 preludes, Op. 23:
No. 1 in F Sharp minor: largo
No. 2 in B flat major: Maestoso
No. 3 in D minor: tempo di minuetto
No. 4 in D major: Andante cantabile
No. 5 in G minor: Alla marcia
No. 6 in E flat major: Andante
No. 7 in C minor: Allergo
No. 8 in A flat major: Allegro vivace
No. 9 in E flat minor: Presto
No. 10 in G flat major: largo

Morceaux de fantaisie, Op. 3:
No. 1 Elegie in E flat minor
No. 2 Prelude in C sharp minor
No. 3 Melodie in E major
No. 4 Polichinelle in F sharp minor
No. 5 serenade in B flat minor

[Lord Grendel]

Thanks Julez, I love Sergei myself and Naxos is a very good label as well. I have some of those I think, but I'll have to check and make certain...if not it will be on my shopping list for sure.